Jelle Hatenboer: “An internship can really help in figuring out what you want from your future career.”

28 January 2014

Jelle finished both his BSc in Business Administration and the Honours College extension before he decided to start looking for an internship. Using the mailing list of the Careers Company he found a five month internship at the economic department of The Dutch embassy in New Zealand.

Why did you do an internship?

In the final stages of my bachelor degree I felt I had to get some perspective on what “having a job” would mean for me. I realized that I couldn’t get that experience from doing a board year or any other student related activity. So before starting my master degree it felt like a good decision to take a step back from student life and take the time to find an internship.

What did you learn from your internship?

Experiencing how an embassy operates in a foreign country and how it operates as part of a larger organization, namely the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was really unique. I learned how an embassy communicates economic information back to The Hague and how it aids foreign companies with their trade activities to the Netherlands. But more personally I learned that you have to be assertive in your work. If you want to learn something specific from your job or realize a certain goal then create an opportunity to do so. Your job will become a large part of your life, you have determine for yourself what you want to gain from it.

What tips do you have for students willing to do an internship?

I can wholeheartedly recommend doing an internship as it will truly help you in deciding what you want to do for your career. Subscribe to the mailing list of the FEB Careers Company, ask your professors for any connections they might have or drop by one of the many organizations that can help find you an internship. Other than, you just need the right bit of luck! All the best in finding the perfect internship for you!

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